Friendship 101
by kazorashi
Summary: In which Itona and Manami think outside the box for the class presentation. The element they have chosen? Friendship. Now, they just need to get there first.
1. Prologue: The Introduction

_**Friendship 101**_

 _Prologue: The Introduction_

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 **Disclaimer: I do not own Assassination Classroom. If I did, Nagisa would have grown taller.**

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"Stop fidgeting." He whispers.

"B-But!" She protests.

" _Manami._ " He urges.

"I-I... F-Fine..." She relents.

"Good. Now, we'll do fine." He encourages.

"If you say so, Itona-kun." She smiles.

With a nod of his head to her, Itona and Manami waited patiently as Karma and Nagisa finished their presentation of the phosphorus element. The pair had finished off with Karma cracking a joke about Nagisa's gender and the whole class chuckled. As the two began to walk back to their seats, Karma and Rio fist bumped and they laughed as Nagisa scowled at them.

The blue haired boy sat in his usual seat by Kaede, who put a comforting hand on his shoulder and smiled. Nagisa returned the smile, his demeanor turning lighter. Karma snickered and made his way back to his seat.

Along the way, he paused at Manami's desk and smiled.

"Good luck." He whispered tenderly. Manami nodded her head and Karma continued to his desk.

"Now then... Would the last group please step forward and present their element they have chosen?" Koro-sensei spoke with a grin (as if he had a choice otherwise). Itona stood up first from behind Manami and helped the petite girl gather their papers. Together, they made their way to the front of the classroom and prepared themselves.

The two spared each other a glance. While Itona was calm and collected, Manami was still fidgeting. Her feet shuffled and her fingers twirled together. Ever so subtle, Itona stepped closer to his partner and brushed his fingers with hers. Immediately, Manami felt herself relax a bit. Managing a smile, the two looked ahead of the classroom.

The only person who could have spotted their fingers brush would be Koro-sensei and the students with high awareness.

Koro-sensei's smile seemed to have grown even bigger.

Clearing her throat, Manami started. "We are Itona-kun..."

"And Manami." Itona finished. Majority of the class _ooh'd_ at the familiarness of them using each other's first names. "We decided to choose an element not found in the periodic table." Continued the white haired boy. "It is an element that is created and not founded, formed and intangible."

"Instead of gases and metals, Itona-kun and I spent our time researching this element. The only test subjects we could use was each other." Manami's voice pitched a little at the end in nervousness but Itona grinned.

"Nice job not stuttering." Commented the younger, blunt boy. The blush on Manami's face made Itona's grin grow even wider and the chemist just _knew_ her partner was taking advantage of being in the front of the classroom.

"I-Itona-kun! Please!" She whispered in a hush voice. "Not now!" Itona waved her comment off.

"Yeah, yeah. Anyways," Itona began again, "the element we have chosen for this project was..." He paused, trying to fight off the sudden blush that was fighting its way up to his cheeks as he said the word. "F-Friendship." Rio, Touka, and Hiroto chuckled at Itona's bashful demeanor, all of them knowing it was due to Manami's influence. And seeing how her partner couldn't continue, Manami finished for them.

"It's an element not founded on the periodic table but very necessary for people to be able to show and express their feelings. It's an element that doesn't have a number or any real solutions. It doesn't have a label and not easily simplified. But..." The raven haired girl looked at Itona for a moment. Said boy caught her stare and his blush deepened once Manami smiled.

"It's a very important, natural way of life."

Coughing, the short boy straightened up and tried to ignore his classmates quiet laughter. Ryouma was the loudest and Itona found himself wishing that the larger boy would step on a nail. He also did his best to ignore the confused and displeased stare Karma was sending him. "While spending time together, me and Manami found that there are several important factors to creating friendship."

"And this is our story." They said, together.

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 _(A/N: Hey hey. I haven't posted anything in a while on this site, or anywhere else, so please don't mind me much. I'm really rusty. For pairings, I don't necessarily have a end game for this story, or a plot HAHA, but I do ship_ karumana _and_ itonami _like FedEx. We shall see._

 _Sorry Shugo Chara! fans! I still haven't forgotten ya'll.)_


	2. An Awkward Beginning!

**Friendship 101**

 _Chapter One: An Awkward Beginning! It's...Not A Great Start_

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 **Disclaimer: I do not own Assassination Classroom. If I did, karumana would officially be cannon and I wouldn't have left my peeps feeling thirsty after that last chapter.**

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"Please get into your pairs now class." Koro-sensei said and the students of class 3-E started moving. As most students had their partners across the classroom, Manami fidgeted in her seat as her partner was just two seats away.

 _Should I go to him? Or maybe he will come here?_ She thought as the pig-tailed twirled her fingers together. _Will he think I'm rude if I wait for him? M-Maybe too straight forward if I just went up to him? Heaven knows that I have that problem._ As she contemplated to herself, Manami failed to notice Itona who stood before her and was waving his hand in front of her face.

"Okuda-san?" He tried. "Okuda-san, hello? I'm right here." The short boy paused and shook his head at the strange girl. Itona watched her in slight amusement and felt little weirded out. Before him, the chemist was looking down in her lap playing with her fingers and...

 _Is she talking to herself?_

Indeed, Manami was unaware that she was mumbling to herself. Itona sighed and walked behind her to grab the chair at the empty desk. He pulled it up to her side and decided to wait for her to notice him. _How long will it take though?_ He wondered slightly and rested his chin in his palm.

In wonderment, Itona spent the next two and a half minutes observing his partner. Not once did she look up and her mumbling got quieter. Thinking it was best to do something, Itona brought his free hand and gently pulled on her braids.

Manami squeaked at the tug and quickly looked to her left. She felt her eyes widened at the sight of the small boy already sitting next to her. "H-Horibe-kun... Y-You're here." She stuttered. Itona nodded his head in acknowledgement.

"Yeah." He said coolly. "Have been for a while." He added. Manami blushed at the fact.

"I-I'm sorry." She stuttered shyly and was left feeling a little ashamed. The white haired boy tilted his head in a fairly cute manner at this.

"What for?" He asked. Pausing, the girl bit her lower lip.

"F-For not noticing you?" She answered as if she was asking a question or permission.

"Don't worry about it." Replied Itona, waving off her answer. "Anyways, we should get started on the project, right?" He started to gather his papers.

"R-Right!" Manami did the same and brought out her papers filled with ideas and statements about all kinds of elements. Itona peeked down at her desk and raised a brow.

He was impressed.

On all kinds of sheet paper and notepads, Itona found neatly written notes. There were hand drawn pictures of molecules and a standard edition of the periodic table folder. On the folder was scribbled handwriting filling the edges in different colored pens.

"Wow." Itona expressed with awe. "They weren't kidding when they said you loved chemistry so much." After saying this, he looked up in time to see a blush fiercely cover Manami's face. Her face was so cherry red that it traveled all the way down her neck and then some more. This made Itona feel unusually shy. He cleared his throat and asked, "Are you okay? Did I say something wrong?"

Manami just shook her head and subtly tried to hide some of her notes. "N-No..." She whispered. Itona almost had to strain his hearing in order to catch what she had said. The younger boy could feel a frown forming on his face.

"Are you lying to me?" He questioned to her and leaned in closer. Manami shuffled away.

"N-No." Was her reply as she tried to hide her face behind sheets of papers. The blush stayed on her face. Itona waited for Manami to calm down, seeing as how pushing her to answer him would only lead her to staying silent.

After a few moments, Manami slowly pulled the papers away from her face and looked cautiously at Itona. He was quiet but patient and that made her feel a bit at ease. "I-I'm sorry." She started. "It's just, when you said that... I got a little embarrassed. Ch-Chemistry used to be my only friend and s-so I-I..." Manami couldn't finish her sentence. Itona nodded his head anyways and pretended that he understood what she was saying.

"Of course." Was all he said. "Now, shall we decide which element we want to use? I think we're falling behind." Itona pointed out. As Manami looked over his shoulders, she saw that her classmates have all seemed to have chosen their element to present in a week's time.

"R-Right. Let's get started."

And so the two looked over each other's notes and talked together. It was awkward for them since they were both quiet and very straight forward at the same time. The two found themselves wanting the other to speak before they had said anything and when they did try to speak, they kept interrupting each other. Itona found it a bit annoying and Manami was growing a little frustrated as well. Although he was patient, Manami couldn't help but feel as if she was letting her partner down.

 _I'm the best at science and yet I can't even... With another person I just..._ Manami clenched her fists in frustration. _I can't get the words out right!_

Itona sensed Manami's self dilemma and offered a suggestion.

"How about something simple like oxyg—"

"Good thing we got oxygen."

Well, he tried to offer a suggestion. Twirling around, Itona looked for the voice that spoke and saw Ryōma high-fiving Tōka. He glared at the large boy. Only his voice could echo so loudly in the classroom. _That damn ape._ Itona growled. Hearing it, Manami scooted her chair afraid that Itona was mad at her and her...antisocial tendencies. The boy immediately noticed and looked back at her. He raised a brow.

"Why are you scooting away?" He asked and scooted closer.

"I-I am not!" Manami fired back, clearly lying, and scooted a bit further away. A vein suddenly appeared on Itona's forehead.

"Yes, you are. You just did it!" He accused and even pointed a finger at her.

"D-Don't point at me!" Manami snapped. Even though she stuttered out of nervousness, the sharp tone in her voice was received loud and clear to Itona. She even dared to scoot further away, almost leaving her own desk. The boy scowled.

"There!" He exclaimed through clenched teeth. His tone was loud and clear enough to catch a few students attention. Some of them cast a worried glance. Itona and Manami paid no mind to it them, too involved with each other. "You did it again!" Itona growled, this time _to_ her. The chemist girl flinched and felt her fingers clenched the edge of her seat. Her heart pounded loudly inside her chest, her whole being trembling and Manami could feel tears forming in her eyes.

 _He really is angry at me._ She thought with sudden fright and unease. Chewing her lower lip, Manami mustered as much courage as she could and choked out, "S-Stop. Don't shout at me." Her eyes squeezed shut.

"What was that?" Itona stubbornly asked as he folded his hands against his chest. His tone was unfriendly and uncaring. Manami felt her heart squeeze at just hearing it.

"Y-You're b-being really scary." She mumbled, unable to keep her feelings in her body. Even though she was quiet, Itona felt himself relax and guilt started to eat away at him. As he looked closer at her, he finally saw how her eyes were shut tight and how her bottom lip was pressed against her teeth. Her glasses seemed to fog and her cheeks had wet trails going downwards.

 _Oh for fuck's sak—_

"What's going on here?" Karma's voice.

 _OH FOR FUCK'S SAKE._ With a heavy sigh, Itona turned to look up at Karma who was standing before them. The redhead's gaze was stern and steady on Itona, as if accusing him for making Manami feel scared. _Which... Probably Isn't too far fetched to be honest._ The small boy added to himself with pursed lips. Irritation slowly started to build itself in Itona as Karma continued to stare down at him. He didn't like the look in those mercury orbs. They were hateful eyes.

The class had turned eerily quiet by this point. The sound of pin dropping could be heard.

Sitting up straighter, the shorter boy _tsk'd_ and folded his arms along his chest. With a sneer, Itona said in a nasty voice, "It's none of your business, _Karma_."

Straight to the point.

That was Itona.

Karma's eyes narrowed. "It have better be nothing." He said slowly and dangerously before looking to Manami. His expression softened. "Are you okay?" He asked her. Manami went stiff and her face was flushed with embarrassment. Did Karma really have to step in?

Shame washed over her and a sense of helplessness tightened around her throat. With hesitant eyes, she looked over to a concerned Karma and then to Itona. Her partner.

He wasn't looking at her.

 _This really sucks._ Manami thought to herself sadly. _Am I no good? How come I can't stand up for myself?_ She faintly wondered, patting her cheeks to dry them. Taking her glasses off, Manami rubbed her eyes a bit and only nodded to Karma, not trusting her voice enough to speak. Sniffling, she hurriedly placed her glasses back on her face and placed her head in her arms.

Karma frowned and knew that position of hers very well.

She was really upset.

Before he could say anything over to her, laughter echoed behind them.

"Nurufufufu~!" Koro-sensei appeared behind them with small burst of wind following after. "I'll handle this, Karma-kun." He stated happily. Karma, hesitant, simply nodded and quietly left Manami's desk. He looked back once to check on her and then turned to leave a glare in Itona's direction.

It lingered on in the shorter boy's conscience and Itona tried to brush the look off. He didn't want Karma affecting him. Huffing slightly, Itona looked to Koro-sensei with a blank look. "I didn't do anything." He deadpanned. Koro-sensei nodded his head and laughed.

"I believe you, Itona-kun." He chirped. "Come, let us go outside the classroom and away from prying eyes, neh?" At this statement, Itona hastily turned around to look at his classmates who immediately went back to what they were doing. Narrowing his eyes, Itona stood up first and walked out of the classroom. Koro-sensei then turned his attention to the small, trembling girl in her seat.

If his smile could get any bigger, it did.

"Come, Okuda-san." Koro-sensei spoke with such a gentleness that forced Manami to look up. A tentacle wrapped around her shoulders lightly, urging her out of her seat. "Let's go outside, mm?" Manami wiped at her eyes and nodded once. She let Koro-sensei's tentacle help her out of her seat and quickly walked out the door of class 3-E.

Koro-sensei followed after her shortly. Before stepping out, he turned to the class. "No eavesdropping you guys. Nurufufufu~!" He laughed and had almost of a gleeful smile on his face. "It will all be okay." With that said, Koro-sensei softly shut the door to the classroom.

Everyone looked at the door and then to each other. In a flash, the class found themselves pressed against the door. Students such at Hiroto and Rio had cups pressed against the wall, eagerly wanting to know what was going on.

"Hey, can you make room?" Tōka asked and nudged Ryōma with her foot. The large boy rolled his eyes but made room anyways.

"Ow! That was my leg!" Hinano scowled to Taiga and slapped his arm.

"Sorry." The pervert apologized and tried to press his cup against the wall too.

"Shh!" Rio hissed. "I can't hear what's going on!" She nudged Tomohito's hand off her elbow.

"What she said!" Hiroto added in. Yūma tried to pull his best friend away from the door.

"This is a really bad habit!" He exclaimed to no avail.

"I can't _believe_ Itona would treat my Okuda-chan that way!" Kaede scowled and started tapping her foot.

"You said it!" Rio chirped in, agreeing completely.

"Did you guys even _hear_ how Okuda-san reacted to Itona though?" Taisei asked, wanting to defend his friend.

"Yeah, she was pretty fierce." Takuya added.

"Are you trying to say that my Okuda-chan is at fault?" Kaede suddenly leered. Yukiko gave a sharp look to the two boys. Nagisa tried to hold the girls back.

"Yes." Was all Sōsuke answered. That was the topping to the cake.

Soon enough, majority of the classroom was in a full out argument about who started the disagreement between the two straight forward kids and whose fault it was in the end. They were all extremely opinionated and completely forgot their original task of eavesdropping.

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Manami and Itona stood in the hallway a ways from each other. They, including Koro-sensei, could hear every word that was being said in the classroom. Embarrassment crept up in both of them. Manami shuffled her feet and twirled her fingers together while Itona folded his arms and closed his eyes.

 _This is just great._ He thought. _What a way to start the week._

 _This is the worst day ever._ They both thought.

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 _(A/N: Here is chapter one! I'm almost done with the next chapter but won't be posting until next week. As you can see, our favorite quiet, blunt and science-y advanced students really don't get along. I kind of like this, kind of not. It was pretty hard to write. I hope it's enough though.)_


	3. Let's Meet Once More!

**Friendship 101**

 _Chapter Two: Let's Meet Once More! Can We Start Over?_

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 **Disclaimer: I do not own Assassination Classroom. If I did, Nagisa would not be a shota. Shouta? Shōta?**

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Itona grumbled to himself as he tapped his fingers along the surface of the rail. Ryōma, Kirara, and Taisei looked at him with worry. Well, at least Ryōma did. Kirara could feel a tick forming on her head and Taisei seemed equally annoyed with all the tapping.

"Will you stop that?!" Snapped the gloomy girl. She quickly shut her book and glared at Itona. "How can anyone read with that racket?"

"Put a sock in it Hazama. It's not even that loud." Itona retorted in an equally annoyed tone.

"That doesn't make it less irritating." She scowled and began reading again. They were currently seated outside on the stairs that led the field of class 3-E. The four of them were waiting for Takuya who was still inside the classroom talking to Sumire. Though the group didn't look like it, they never ate without one of their own.

And that was how Takuya found them a few more minutes later. Waiting for him. Except without insults being thrown his way for taking too long as per usual, Kirara and Taisei were not so subtly ignoring Itona's existence. Itona himself was slightly turned away from the rest of the group as Ryōma sat behind them all, a frown etched onto his face.

"Uhh.. Hey you gu—" He began to say but was stopped short by Kirara's glare. The cowardly blonde gulped and just sat down next to her. He warily began to eat his lunch (it was noodles, not to anyone's surprise).

Uncomfortable with the atmosphere of their gang, Ryōma cleared his throat. "So, what took you so long, huh?" He asked and turned to look at Takuya from above.

"Nrmph mrch." The blonde slurped. Kirara hit him in the back of his head with her novel. "Ow!" Grumbling, the he wiped at his mouth and looked back at his friend. "Nothing much." Takuya continued. "Hara-chan and I were just talking about our families cooking background for a bit. But on my way here, guess what I saw?" There was a glint and a slyness in the blonde's eyes as he finished. Ryōma noticed how Takuya glanced quickly at Itona before riverting his full attention back to him.

He raised a thick brow. "What?" He asked as the two leaned in.

"I saw Okuda-san with Karma." He whispered. Itona heard this and his tapping stopped. Takuya leaned in further to Ryōma. "She was crying." He said even quieter.

 _SLAM!_

Ryōma and Takuya quickly looked up and saw their short friend walking away from the group, his steps hard and fast as he made way to the field. Shaking his head, Ryōma stood up and followed after him. "Hey shrimp! Slow down!" He shouted.

Takuya looked to Kirara and Taisei. "I didn't think it would bother him that much. Did I miss something?" He asked. Kirara shook her head and Taisei rolled his eyes.

"What do you think?"

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"Hey! Itona-kun! Wait up!" Ryōma continued to call out for the short boy. Itona only sighed and slowed his pace but did not stop. Not too long after he did, did Ryōma catch up. After catching his breath, Ryōma knocked Itona in the back of the head. "Thanks for waiting for me!" He growled.

Itona rolled his eyes and glared at the larger boy. "Whatever." He grumbled out. Ryōma frowned.

"What's with you? Why are you so irritated?" He asked with concern. Ryōma watched as Itona's shoulder tense for a moment and then relaxed. The expression on his face was that of irritation and then guilt. "You okay?" Asked Ryōma as he fell step in step with Itona.

The white hair boy shrugged his shoulder, as if hesitant. "I'm fine." He lied.

Ryōma tolled his eyes. "It's not usual for you lie." He replied back. Itona stopped walking and looked at the boy next to him.

"What do you mean?" There was a hint of accusation and amusement lined in his voice.

"I mean," Ryōma reiterated, "that you always tell the truth. No matter how blunt of inconsiderate you are. You're rubbing off on Takuya by the way, stop that." Itona smiled in response to this. Ryōma looked at Itona sternly. "So for you to lie, it's weird. You know?" He finished.

"I guess." He replied.

Ryōma gave Itona a long, hard look. "So do you wanna tell me about it?"

"About what?"

"About Okuda and why you two don't seem to get along." Ryōma stated. Itona flinched as if that statement alone was enough to hurt him. It was quiet between the two. Biting his lower lip, Itona finally gave a long, deep sigh.

"I... Didn't mean to snap." Itona finally said. His voice was soft. "She kept scooting away. I didn't like it. I feel as if..." Itona gulped. "It was like she was scared of me. I didn't like it." Itona's eyes seemed to sparkle in a sad way. "And so I got kind of mad and... We didn't exactly click. I want to get along though." Itona admitted with a sigh. "Me and her together, we'd make the best partners for this project. We would kick you and Yada-san's fine ass out of the park."

Ryōma pretended he didn't hear that.

"I know she's usually quiet and soft spoken, but... I don't knooow." Itona suddenly whined. He put a hand over his eyes. "This _sucks_!I don't even know how that happened in class. And now she can't even look me in the eyes." Itona groaned and crouched to the floor. "Why did this happen?" He mumbled to himself and shaking his head.

Ryōma couldn't help but to smile at his friend.

"It's okay then." The older boy comforted and put a hand on his shoulder. Itona looked up with curiosity.

"How is it okay? The project just started and we can't even be two desks apart without her trembling." Ryōma laughed out loud at this. The short boy narrowed his eyes. "Why are you laughing, you damn ape?!" He snapped.

"It will be fine. You seem as if you want to make up with her." Explained Ryōma as he helped Itona off the ground. "As long as you feel like you want to be friends, I'm sure everything will be fine." This perked Itona's interest.

"F-Friends?!" He repeated. Ryōma nodded his head.

"That's right. Friends." Ryōma pat Itona's head. "You want to be friends with her, right?"

Itona stayed silent. It's not like he disagreed. _But is that what I want?_ He asked himself. From what Itona had heard about Manami from other classmates before, it seemed as if they shared the same interest and weaknesses. He always thought that was interesting but never made a move to want to get to know her.

Until this project.

Itona remembered hearing how they were to be partners for the next week.

 _Interesting._ Is what he thought. Itona felt a small smile try to fight its way to his lips.

"—na? Itona? Hey!" Ryōma shouted, snapping the younger boy from his thoughts. Looking up to meet Ryōma's eyes did the short boy smile.

"Yeah, I want to be friends with her."

Not understanding what happened within the small boy, Ryōma went with the flow. Nodding his head, he said, "That's good. I believe no matter what, you two will be friends."

"What if she runs away from me though?" Asked Itona as he took the hand from his head away. Ryōma shrugged.

"Why would that stop you?" He asked back. Itona immediately felt his mood lighten at the words and nodded his head.

"You're right. It wouldn't." Itona's smile grew as the two started to head back to their group. Ryōma chuckled at the fact that Itona seemed lighter and brighter after their conversation. "Thanks, Terasaka." Itona said suddenly, stopping the older boy. "Thanks to you, I have an idea of how to approach her after school." Ryōma _hmph'd_ in good nature.

"Glad to hear it."

"Although..." Itona began with a hint of deviousness. "When I really think about it, you are reason we argued in the first place."

"Wait, what?" Ryōma pressed, disbelief on his face.

"Yeah, you totally need to make it up to us later." Itona continued and started to walk faster.

"No way! What did I do!?" Shouted the older boy. "What will I do!?"

"I'm sure I'll come up with something later." Itona promised.

* * *

 _Meanwhile..._

Karma waited inside the hallway, crouched in front of the girl whose tears would not stop. "Okuda-san." He spoke softly and tried to lift her head up. Manami only shook her head and did her best to press herself more against the wall. It was as if she thought she could disappear if she did.

Manami had hidden herself away in a corner as soon as most of her classmates disappeared for lunch. If Karma wasn't serious about looking for her, he would have missed her. The redhead didn't like to admit it, to her or himself, but if Manami wasn't being upfront or blunt with you, her existence in class was almost nonexistent.

Only people such as himself, Rio, and Nagisa would be able to spot her.

"Okuda-san..." Karma tried again. Manami hiccuped and the redhead felt his heart break a little at the sound. He waited patiently in front of her despite the small cramp he was starting to feel in his calf. Karma's foot was also quickly falling asleep. Still, he wanted to listen.

A few moments after, Manami's crying started to slow down and she began, "I didn't... Want to argue with Hori-ribe-kun." She cried quietly. "H-He hates me! It's really all my fault." Manami choked back a sob and her shoulders shook.

"That's not true." Karma immediately defended with a soft sternness in his voice. "He just doesn't understand you. He wasn't patient enough." He placed his hands on Manami's shoulders, wanting her to look at him.

Hesitantly, the timid girl lifted her head and Karma internally winced at her red and puffy eyes. "Look," he gulped, "Manami-chan." Said girl did a slight pout with her lips. She knew Karma only uses her name when he is about to tell her something important. "I don't know what happened between you two but please don't cry, okay?" He asked. "I believe you when you say you didn't want to fight with him. But I don't think it's just your fault.

"Maybe both of you were wrong. But don't beat yourself up for it. I don't believe he's angry at you. He's probably thinking the same things as you. You two are really the same side to the same coin, after all." Karma ruffled the top of Manami's head and smiled. "You're both a little awkward and fairly blunt," _Itona more especially,_ Karma mentally added to himself, "you two only don't know how to treat each other. That's all."

Manami nodded her head in understanding. She wiped at her cheeks with the sleeve of her gray blazer and smiled up to her good friend. "So... Do you think he'll still want to be my partner? Even after...all this?" She asked, a little hesitant and very shy. Karma shrugged his shoulders.

"Who knows? You'll have to ask him later." The redhead said in a soft tone. "But don't worry, if he doesn't want to be partners, I," Karma began to smile, "have no problem throwing Nagisa his way to deal with him. Then we'll be partners, hm?"

Manami giggled at that and Karma couldn't help but soften his heart some more to the girl. She looked up brightly at him. Karma decided at this moment she looked so much better smiling than she did crying.

"Y-You said we were the same side of the same coin." She stated. "How sure are you about that?"

"One hundred percent." He answered. Manami felt a grin starting to form.

"Okay. Then... I'll talk to him." Letting out a long breath, Manami stood up. "Thank you, Karma. Everything is less scary after talking to you." At the confession, Karma felt the tip of his ears turn red in embarrassment. He rubbed the back of his head.

"Ah, yeah. No problem." Karma halfheartedly said. Manami laughed a bit and began to walk away.

"I think I know what to sa—" She began but was interrupted by a frantic, _Wait!_ Turning around, Manami tilted her head and wondered why Karma was still crouched on the ground. "Karma?" She asked and walked back. "What's wrong?"

Karma flashed Manami an embarrassed grin before sheepishly saying, "My foot fell asleep and I have a cramp." Manami's mood lightened considerably as she sweetly helped the redhead off the ground. After thanking her, the bespectacled girl grinned evilly. Ever so subtle, Manami nudged Karma's foot causing pain to shoot up his leg. "Ack!" Karma shrieked (he would deny it for the rest of his life) and tried to lean on the wall to balance himself.

Looking up, sharp eyes narrowed on a very smug Manami. Karma scowled. "Manami-chan!" He scolded. "You know I hate it when you do that!" Sticking out her tongue, Manami nudged his foot again causing the redhead to cry out. "Stooop!" He pitched and grabbed his legs. Laughing out loud, the petite girl ran down the hallway and out the doors. "Hey! Get back here!" Karma shouted.

He tried taking a step to go after her but a ticklish pain started to travel up his leg. Karma shuddered. He was very thankful no one was there to see him.

 _Well..._ He thought to himself as he rested along the wall. _If she's able to tease me, she must be feeling better._ Karma smiled at the thought. As far as he knew, it was only to him Manami would even dare to try to pull a fast one on. He had to admit that she could be very sneaky when she felt up to it. Still, Karma grinned.

She wasn't going to get away with this.

* * *

 _"Nurufufufu~!" Koro-sensei spoke as he looked to Manami and Itona. They had just exited the classroom and both were doing their best to ignore the other. It wasn't out of hate, for the most part, but the two of them were uneasy and uncomfortable. They didn't know what to do._

 _They also didn't like how the class was listening in._

 _"Come you two." Koro-sensei said quietly, with a smile. "Let us get away from the classroom, neh?" He asked. Before Itona and Manami could refuse, they felt tentacles wrap around them and they were suddenly placed inside Koro-sensei's garments. Faster than they could blink, Manami and Itona felt rush of wind and the two suddenly found themselves standing on top of hard stone._

 _They were suddenly hit by the intense heat of the weather as the two separated from Koro-sensei._

 _"Where are we?" Itona asked on shaky legs as he tried to remain standing. Koro-sensei chuckled._

 _"We are on the Great Sphinx of Giza at the moment." He spoke with such a carefree attitude. Manami felt nauseous while Itona narrowed his eyes._

 _"And_ why _are we on top of the Sphinx, sensei?" Itona bit out. It didn't sound as ferocious as he wanted it to since he almost stumbled. Koro-sensei only laughed._

 _"To get away from class more efficiently!" He said as if it was_ that _obvious. "I can't let others interfere in your private affairs. You know, Itona-kun, there are just some matters that must not be known to other people. This is a skill assassins learn once they move on from a normal life." Itona raised a brow at that but kept quiet. Koro-sensei continued. "I also thought that Okuda-san would have liked to visit the Sphinx once more." Manami waved her hand at the comment, as if saying "Don't mind me."_

 _Itona just fidgeted a bit. "Yeah, well... What is it you want from us?"_

 _Koro-sensei smiled. "Oh, nothing really." Admitted the octopus of a teacher. "I just thought that you two needed time away to cool down."_

 _"A-And so you took us to Egypt? For a c-cool down?" Manami dead panned while fanning herself. Itona found himself agreeing with the pig-tailed girl completely._

 _"Nurufufufu~!" Koro-sensei wrapped a tentacle around the two student's shoulders, bringing them closer. "Now, here's a secret for the two of you. I put you two together on purpose." At the confession, Manami and Itona looked to their teacher. Both wondering exactly why their teacher would do, or even admit such a thing. "You see, I personally took an interest in your lack of a friendly relationship. Everyone in the classroom is fairly close with one another, but you two never seemed to interact or even talk to each other much. Which I had found odd, seeing as you two are both similar._

 _"You two are the best students at science, are great at math, and have this unique social tendency." Itona and Manami knew that Koro-sensei was calling their blunt manner in a nice way. "I guess you can call it a selfish teacher's desire to want to see two students who are so similar work together for the first time. I had thought that you both would have been great friends due to this project I threw out there, alas... That was not the case."_

 _Koro-sensei patted their heads and Manami could've sworn she saw something of a wistful look in her teacher's beady eyes. "I apologize for my assumptions. But I do sincerely hope that you two manage to work things out. I know that people can start off on the wrong foot, but it would be a shame if people never let themselves show who they are because of a misunderstanding. I do believe that you two would make amazing partners." Koro-sensei smiled and patted Manami's head. He leaned in and whispered, "Okuda-san. Don't give up. You have the purest heart in class, belittling yourself will only hurt you." Manami's felt her heart pound loudly inside her chest as a weird kind of strangle forced its way around her heart. "Kindness is not a weakness." Koro-sensei whispered ever so softly._

 _Manami felt tears gather in the corner of her eyes. Slowly, she leaned closer into Koro-sensei's chest and nodded her head. Itona watched their interaction with questions in his head but found it hard to invite himself in. He saw his classmate's shoulders shake and started to feel a little awkward._

 _Before Itona could even think of what to say or do, Koro-sensei said, "Time to go to class now." Ever so quickly, Itona felt tentacles around him again and as a rough wind swept past him. In a moment, he saw the familiar broken down building of their Class 3-E. Just as before, Itona staggered once his feet touched the ground._

I can't get used to it. _He thought a little bitterly as he tried to stand again. He noticed Manami's face was flushed as she also had a hard time regaining solid footing._ We're really not made to leave the ground after all. _He faintly thought as Koro-sensei began to walk away. "Hey!" He called out, trying to walk after the yellow octopus but only managed to stumble. "Don't just leave us here!"_

 _"Nurufufufu~! Don't take too long in class Itona-kun. You and Okuda-san still need to agree to an element to work on for this project. Right now, you're failing!" Laughing, Koro-sensei continued. Itona growled._

 _"Why can't you just assign us one then?"_

 _"That would not be fun." Koro-sensei lightly scolded as he reached the door. Looking back, Itona could have sworn that his teacher had a smirk on his ever non-changing face. "There are many more elements in this world that can't be found or have not yet been explained."_

 _Itona raised a confused brow. "What do you mean?" He asked. Alas, the small boy finally seemed to have regained a good stability of the ground as he found that his legs weren't wobbling anymore. "Everything has been found."_

 _"Is that really the case?" Koro-sensei asked and opened the door._

 _Frowning, Itona replied, "Yes."_

 _"Nurufufufu~!"_

* * *

 _I think I'm starting to understand that octopus._ Itona told himself as he stood outside the classroom door. School had gotten out just a few minutes ago and Itona had only walked to his locker to switch his shoes. He had spent the time to tell his friends that they could leave without him for he has something to do after school.

He only hoped his reason was still here.

 _Why didn't I look for her? I'm not even sure if she's still here._ Cursing his lack of a plan, Itona still readied himself. Slowly, he opened the class door.

"Oomf!"

"Ack!"

Feeling a pain on his forehead, Itona rubbed his temple and looked up to see Manami doing the same. Noticing her first, he straightened himself. "O-Okuda." He called out. Hearing his voice, Manami stopped rubbing her head and looked down a bit to see the person she wanted to meet the most.

"H-Horibe-kun." She gasped, stepping back.

Silence ensued between the two as they both waited for the other to speak. Manami shuffled her feet and twirled her fingers while Itona rocked on his heels a little. Feeling a bit awkward, Itona began.

"I—"

"So—"

He stopped just as soon as Manami started and stopped as well. They looked at each other. Itona could see the nervousness in his partner's eyes. Itona felt his heart squeeze a little. Clearing his throat, he tried to speak again. "Okuda." He said, tone soft. "I'm sorry for the way I treated you earlier in class." _There,_ he thought, _that was good, wasn't it?_ Manami's eyes widened a bit. This urged Itona to continue. "I know I was a bit impatient with you and in turn, was really rude. I shouldn't have treated you that way. I'm really sorry." Itona bowed his head but stopped short when he made contact with something very...soft.

And squishy?

 _How nice._ Itona liked the feeling.

"EEK!"

 _Oh my gosh, please don't let this be a boob._ Was Itona's first thought as he quickly stood straight. Terror filled his small body as Manami had her hands covered over her chest. Her cheeks were rosy and her eyes were wide with surprise, shock, disbelief, and embarrassment. "Oh my... _God,_ I am _so very_ sorry!" Itona apologized and stepped back. Heat spread through his cheeks like wildfire and Itona found himself speechless. "I really didn't mean... I am so sorry. _God,_ am I sorry. I-I..."

Manami felt her lips twitch at Itona being so...flustered. He reminded her of herself most of the time. The bespectacled girl found herself trying to fight down a smile as Itona continued to apologize.

"I-I would never on purpose... To y-you, I-I... Least, misunders—"

"I...believe you." Manami spoke softly. Itona felt relief flood through him at the very words but still couldn't help but feel embarrassed. The raven haired chemist smiled a bit. "I-I'm also sorry. For... For snapping at you." Itona, not daring enough to lean in, tried to fix his ears on the girl's words. She was speaking softly but this time, he could see the sincerity in her violet irises. "I-I'm too shy and i-introvert. Dealing with people is h-hard. But..."

Ever so shyly, Manami held out her hand. "P-Please by my friend." Itona hesitantly shook her hand. Her hand was smaller than his even though she was taller but very soft too. This made the blush on Itona's face deepen a little bit more. Manami quickly pulled her hand back and started to go through her bag. "I-I, um, have something for you!" She exclaimed a little too loudly.

Itona was suddenly presented with a piece of paper. It was neat and folded in half. He could faintly see an outline of a bold word on the sheet. Curious, he took it.

"What is it?" Itona asked as he began to open it. Manami stopped him by placing her hand on top of his.

"A-An idea." She whispered. "I-I, um... Thought that... Even if we d-didn't really agree to an element in class. I was hoping maybe... Y-You'd agree to this?" Manami suddenly blushed. "I-I guess I should have talked to you first. We are in this...to-together." She added timidly, her hands falling to her sides.

"Ah, no. It's...okay." Itona replied. "I'm sure it will be good." Without another second to spare, Itona opened the paper. His eyes scanned the sheet before it landed on the black ink. It was one word. One simple word centered perfectly on the paper.

Itona smiled.

 **FRIENDSHIP**

Manami watched eagerly for Itona's reaction. _Is it okay? Did I do too much? What if he doesn't like it?_ The sound of boyish laughter soon filled her ears. _He's laughing? Why?_ "I-Is it that bad?!" Asked Manami with worry as she began to take the paper. "S-Sorry! When I heard what Koro-sensei said to y-you as we got back... Thinking about it... I'm really s-sorry."

"No, no!" Itona interrupted and grabbed the paper back. "It's okay."

"Then why are you laughing?" She sulked.

"I was thinking the same thing." He replied. A cute sound was released from Manami's lips as she tilted her head. "I... Also want to be friends with you." Itona admitted. He watched with amusement at how Manami's eyes brightened.

"Really?!" She asked eagerly. Itona nodded his head and Manami clasped her hands together happily. "This is! This is so...great!" She cheered.

"Y-Yea—" Itona started to say but was stopped short as he felt arms wrap around him.

"Thank you! Horibe-kun!" Manami cried happily. Itona blushed at the sudden hug and flustered, tried pushing the girl away.

"Wh-what're you?!" He stuttered. The blush which had fade away moments ago came back with a vengeance. Manami just seemed to squeeze Itona even tighter. He noted at this very moment, Manami was fairly strong. Far stronger than she looked. Clearly, her size didn't justify the grip she currently had on him. "S-Stop!" Cried the younger boy, pushing (to no avail) her away.

On her own time, Manami finally let go and smiled down to her new friend. "I'm sorry for surprising you. You just made me so happy!" Itona nearly whimpered at the sight of the chemist's smile. It was so bright, Itona found it nearly blinding. And her words...

People thought _he_ was more blunt.

Mentally shaking his head, Itona laughed nervously. "A-Ah, y-yeah." Scratching the back of his head, Itona cleared his throat. "S-So... Ah, since w-we're friends... Umm, c-can I walk... You home?" He asked nervously. Manami giggled and nodded her head.

"Mm!" She agreed enthusiastically. Quickly, she walked past him and made way to the shoe lockers. Itona stood there, dumbfounded.

 _What the hell just happened?_ He wondered. Shaking those thoughts, he closed the classroom door and ran up to Manami. "W-Wait!"

:::::::

Walking home together gave Itona and Manami the time to talk more about their element for the class project due in a week's time. Even though they _finally_ decided on something, the two were trying to make up for lost class time on how to go about this.

"Testing the element of friendship isn't as easy as I thought." Manami confessed after a while. Her feet started dragging behind her. "Especially since we have nothing to go by or have anything to test our element with." She sighed. Itona _hmm'd_ and put a hand to his chin, thinking.

"Testing..." Itona furrowed his brows. He looked to his left and watched the girl beside him frown a bit. She was thinking really hard about this. Itona could relate to her thoughts. If they were as similar as many believed, then she was thinking how hard it was to test something that had no numbers. No numerical data or facts to by on. _No numbers?_ He thought suddenly."Th-Then... H-How about we test on...ourselves?" Itona suggested.

Manami looked to him with bright eyes. A smile grew on her lips as her teeth showed for the first time (that he's seen at least). "That's... A great idea!" She encouraged with a nod. "I think... We can do that." Manami stopped short as she looked up. "Ah, I live here." She stated.

Itona looked up and saw that Manami lived in a very modest looking apartment. In fact... It was a little _more_ than modest. It was actually quite large. Manami lived in what looked like a skyscraper and Itona noticed right away that she lived in the heart of the city.

 _Is she...rich?_ He wondered absentmindedly. "Whoa..." He whispered. Manami gave a nervous laugh.

"My brother gets paid good money since he's a scientist." Was all she said. Itona looked to her and saw that she was twirling her fingers. He raised a brow.

 _She must do that when she's nervous._ Itona remembered in the beginning how she was always so fidgety. He decided to talk to her about it later. "I see." He said. "Then... I'll go home. I don't live too far from here."

"Really?" Manami questioned. Itona nodded his head as a reply. "Then... That's good."

"Mm." With a small wave, Itona began his way home.

"Wait!"

Itona didn't get very far as Manami called after him. He turned around and gave a questioning glance. Manami's stance was tense and a little...cute in a way. Her hands were in fists in front of her skirt and a blush painted across her cheeks. Looking closer, Itona saw that she was trembling a little.

 _Why? What'd I do this time?_ He thought as he waited for Manami to speak.

"N-Name..." She muttered.

"What?" Itona called out. Manami sucked in a breath.

"N-NAME!" She shouted. Itona stepped back in surprise. "W-We're friends now! So!" She gulped and quickly shut her eyes. "CALL ME MANAMI!" She yelled.

Itona could have face palmed. Instead, once again, he felt a rush of heat gather in his cheeks. Itona slightly feared that his blush reached the tip of his ears and the base of his neck. All he could manage was a splutter of the word, "Wh-what!?"

"CALL ME MANAMI!" The chemist yelled again. "We're friends! Call me MANAMI! I-ITONA-KUN!" Manami's voice pitched at the end. Itona, rooted in his spot, was shocked.

 _Oh my gosh._ He thought with embarrassment. The people along the sidelines shot the two small students teasing smiles and some even laughed. Itona did his best to ignore it as he tried processing what Manami had done.

 _Manami._

Itona found that her name suited her fairly well and... _It's my first time calling a girl by her name._ Blushing, Itona could only nod his head once before dashing off. "BYE MANAMI!" He shouted without looking back. It was all the girl needed as she smiled after the boy. Her mood was light and she was fairly content with how today had turned out for her. Giggling, she made her way into the apartment building.

"See you tomorrow, Itona-kun." She whispered to herself.

* * *

"Nurufufufu~! That's what I like to see!" A yellow octopus grinned mischievously from a top a random building. He quickly wrote down in a yellow handbook labeled, **Student Relationships**.

And like the wind, he was gone.

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 _(A/N: I'm just kidding. That last bit with Koro-sensei is not really in the story. ...it actually can be if you want it to, I just found it cute. It's up to you. Whew, long chapter. It was kind of hard to write but I liked the ending. Hope you liked it!_

 _Also, can someone please explain to me what an_ uke kisser _is? Ah, it's for possible plot development. Please and thank you!)_


	4. Enter Rio Nakamura!

**Friendship 101**

 _Chapter Three: Enter Rio Nakamura! Team Itonami For the Wrong Reasons._

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 **Disclaimer: I do not own Assassination Classroom. It belongs to Matsui Yuusei. That troll.**

 _(A/N: It has come to my attention that Itona is, indeed, taller than Manami. My mistake you guys! I was so sure that he was the shortest in class that I went ahead and had him become Class 3-E's shortest student. So please, as you read, imagine him as a small knight. A very small knight. ...Itona, the Smol Knight. He may have a growth spurt later. Lol, okay. I am getting way too ahead of myself!_

 _Also, this was ready last week. My apologies, I was honestly too lazy too upload last Thursday. Sorry to make you guys wait! Once Thursday was over, I waited until this Thursday to upload this chapter because... I'm_ that _kind of person? Very rough chapter? I didn't edit too much? Not beta'd either? Enjoy! I hope, lol._ )

* * *

Itona didn't want to admit it, but he was nervous. As he stood by the door, he waited anxiously to open it. _Gosh, I'm pathetic._ He said to himself. _She's probably not even in there._ That was of course a lie. Itona knew the person he was anticipating was already inside the classroom. Everyone knew that she was always one of the first to arrive and one of the last to leave. _But why do I know that now?_

The bandana wearing boy didn't know how to feel about that. Sighing, Itona wrote the kanji for calm on his hand and swallowed it. He hoped it would give him strength for whatever was waiting for him today.

"Ah? I have never seen someone actually do that trick in real life before." Karma said as he suddenly appeared from behind Itona.

"EEK!" Shrieked the short boy. Karma rolled his head back and laughed out loud. There were another few snorts from behind and Itona felt himself flush. _For fuck's sak—_

"Real manly, Itona-kun." Yūma's voice.

 _FOR FUCK'S SAKE!_ Growling, Itona silently cursed the so called Ikemen and glared at his male peers. "Fuck out of here." He snarled, trying to cover up his...slip. "Can't you see I'm busy?" He asked with a motion of his hands.

"Staring at the door?" Hiroto asked with a sly grin. He wiggled his brows. "Yeah, _real_ busy." Itona grit his teeth as his blush deepened. Two could play at that game.

"How long have you been looking at me? That's what I really want to know." Retorted the smaller boy with a sneer. Hiroto scowled in response and folded his arms. Karma and Yūma laughed. The four boys (three really, Yūma tried not to) threw some more insults at each other before Hiroto finally opened the door.

"Ah!" He sighed happily. "Hellooo lovely ladies of Class 3-" The blonde began with a loud, cheerful and booming voice.

"Good morning Itona-kun!" A voice from across the classroom interrupted. Hiroto did a double take at the classroom to look for the usually meek, small voice of the class' chemist. Four pair of eyes (along with the rest of the classroom to be frank) looked as a petite girl properly dressed in uniform walked over the odd group of boys. She stood in front of Itona with a smile on her face. Quickly, she glanced at the redhead. "Good morning Karma!" She chirped. Karma gave a nod. Manami looked to Yūma. "Good morning Isogai-kun!"

"Morning Okuda-san!" Yūma greeted with a smile.

"Morning Oku—" Hiroto tried.

"Itona-kun," Manami interrupted once more. The blonde felt somewhere in his heart crack at the lack of attention. "I was thinking about yesterday and have a few ideas!" Happily, she grabbed Itona's hand and walked off with him in tow. The small boy blushed as he reluctantly followed after her. Itona could feel a cold sweat break out behind his neck. Already, Karma's gaze was solely focused on him.

 _Dammit, it's too early for this shit._ Sighing, Itona let Manami pull him to her desk. Karma, Hiroto, and Yūma watched as the two left. The raven haired boy was amused by their suddenly... _friendly_ relationship. Going off by what he saw yesterday, he wondered how the two got on such good terms. Was this the power of being straightforward?

"O-Okuda-san..." Hiroto quietly called after. "Where's my good morning!?" Comically crying on his best friend's shoulders, neither noticed as Karma narrowed his eyes. The sight was odd and he found it funny how Manami and shrimp fr— _Itona_ , Karma corrected himself, were suddenly so chummy. Sighing quietly, Karma smiled a bit.

 _At least she is happy and on good terms with the guy now._ With that thought in mind, Karma walked over to Nagisa and Kaede's desks. "Morning ladies~!" Teased the redhead. Kaede laughed as Nagisa rolled his eyes.

"I'm a man!"

:::::::

"From one to five, accountability, reliability, communication, respect, and honesty?" Itona looked at the list Manami made. She had told him that if they were going to test their friendship element, there should be solid grounds to go by. Itona nodded his head as he could agree with most of her list but... Honesty? He looked up to her. "H-How honest are we talking here?" He questioned. Manami twirled her fingers together.

"I-I... Th-that's... Um, it depends?" Forcing a laugh, she took her list back. "I think we should talk about it later? When science class starts." Itona agreed with a nod. Before he went back to his seat, the short boy smiled a bit.

"F-Funny how we don't really have any science or base for our 'element', huh?" Itona asked, quoting the element word with his fingers. Manami chuckled a bit in her seat.

"True!" She admitted.

"B-But... I don't trust atoms anyways. I h-heard they make up everything." At the joke, Manami burst out laughing. Itona felt himself grinning. _This is kind of nice._ He thought as Manami tried to settle down. "You should try a joke." Suggested Itona. She just shook her head, trying to stifle a laugh behind her hand.

"No thanks. Last time I told a chemistry joke, there was no reaction." Manami and Itona laughed. Leaning back in a seat next to the chemist, Itona felt his smile widening. A content feeling was filling him.

"That was pretty good." He complimented. Manami slipped out a merry _Thanks!_ as he continued to sit next to her. "About...the list." Itona began with a little hesitation. Manami caught it but decided to wait for Itona to finish. "I think we can explore one point per day."

Manami nodded her head slowly. "Alright. But, ah... Which one should we start with first?" Itona glanced at the list, his body leaning towards the girl. Humming, Itona pointed his finger to the word communication. "Ah, our worst one." Manami admitted with a small grin. Chuckling, Itona leaned back and slouched in his seat.

"I should probably s-sit behind you, huh?" Asked Itona. "At least until... The project is over." Manami agreed, seeing as how no one sat behind her anyways.

"Yeah, I don't think Koro-sensei would mind." She replied.

"Y-Yeah."

Manami frowned a bit. "Why do you do that?" Questioned the raven haired girl as she put the list away in her bag. Itona gave Manami a _Do what?_ look. "You know," she tried to hint, "stutter."

"I-I don't st—" At the realization, Itona paused. "Ah..." Speechless, the boy just looked at Manami with a weird stare. "I...didn't notice." _Usually, you stutter._ He told himself. _When have I been stuttering?_ Wondered the boy as he remembered yesterday.

"I stutter when I'm nervous or scared. Or crying." Manami confessed in a relaxed way. The boy raised a brow.

"Oh? I made you nervous and scared?" Itona ignored the crying part as he recalled Takuya mentioning seeing Manami crying yesterday. Just remembering it, Itona felt a jab of guilt hit his chest. The pig-tailed girl smiled.

"Yeah. I was scared of you."

"Oh." Itona felt awkward at the honesty. He opened his mouth to say something, only to close it again. What could he say? Sorry for scaring you? _But I apologized yesterday. ...do I have to again?_ Itona brought a hand to his chin, thinking.

"But not anymore!" Manami added after a while. "You're not scary anymore." She said in a sure tone. A smile tugged at the edge of the boy's lips. For some reason, it made him happy to hear it. "Do I...scare you or make you nervous?" She asked cautiously.

"PFFT!" Itona forced a laugh. "Yeah right. You're the nicest person ever. Why would anyone be nervous around yo—" The younger boy suddenly paused as a memory of yesterday came back to him.

 _"We're friends! Call me MANAMI! I-ITONA-KUN!"_

 _Oh my God._

Blushing at the memory did Itona cover his face with his hands. Waves of shame and embarrassment thrashed at him with unimaginable strength. Manami gave a worried glance to her partner. "Are you alright?" Asked the girl as she tried to pry Itona's hands away. Ever so slightly did he turn away.

"F-Fine!" He squeaked.

"I really don't believe you right now." She adamantly stated.

 _Of all the times for her to have a backbone!_ Itona cursed and shied away. "Bell will ring soon. I'll sit behind you l-later." Before Manami had a chance to pull him back, Itona was out of the seat and into his own. He whimpered. _I feel like such a girl!_ Itona beat himself up for blushing. And what's worse... He was sure that anyone paying attention saw how he reacted. The last thing he wanted was for someone to have the wrong idea about him. Her.

Them.

The bell rung before Itona could linger on those thoughts. He sighed with relief.

Saved by the bell.

* * *

 _Moments before Itona went back to his seat..._

Rio and Tōka watched, completely fascinated by the pairing of what Yuzuki dubbed as Itonami. All three girls were thrilled that the two were getting along well. So well. So very well.

"They're so damn cute!" Tōka nearly squealed at the sight of Itona laughing to whatever Manami was saying. "OH MY GOSH! The FEELS! The Tiny Couple~!" Tōka looked as if she was hyperventilating. Yuzuki was close in tow with the reaction. Yuzuki was also looking like she was going to chew her fingers off any moment now. Both of their eyes sparkled. Rio, however, was quiet. She was currently in the process of making a paper crown.

The blonde snickered at her genius plan.

Just last week, Karma had gotten her good with a prank. It did not bode well with the blonde who still didn't want to talk about it. But as she watched Karma and Itona the whole morning, did she grin devilishly. Rio was sure at this point, Manami and Itona were only friends. But Karma didn't look too thrilled about it. Even now as he was with Nagisa, his eyes lingered over to the Itona and Manami every now and then. Rio felt a bubble of evil spread throughout her being.

 _Payback's a bitch._ The blue eyed bombshell smirked. After creating her crown, Rio looked up to her friends. "Hey girls, I have a plan." At the very mention of the word _plan_ , Tōka and Yuzuki's attention were on Rio.

"A plan to kill Koro-sensei?" Asked the manga loving girl.

"Nope." Rio popped at the end. "It involves Itonami and Karma though." Just the mention of the two names made the other girls grin. Tōka immediately caught on to Rio's plan faster as she saw the paper crown.

"Whatever it is, I'm in." Tōka and Rio shook hands.

"I can always count on you." Rio admitted happily. The two fist bumped but were immediately drawn to Yuzuki who gasped.

"Omigosh! Itona-kun is blushing! He's blushing!" Yuzuki quickly slapped Rio's arm, trying to hold in a fangirling scream. Tōka and Rio cheered as Itona's face was red and hidden in his hands. Rio took a picture of the two immediately in a very discreet manner.

Tōka sighed dreamily. "He's so cute. I wish someone would react that way to me." Both of her friends decided not to tell their big breasted friend that most of their male classmates already reacted that way to her. "I am so jumping ship." Stated Tōka as she continued to watch the two.

"Yeah, okay." Rio went back to devising her plan.

* * *

"I am _not_ nervous around you." Itona denied right away as he sat at the desk behind Manami. She had pulled her chair up to his and was sitting across from him. It was science class and everyone was in their assigned groups.

"I don't want you to be nervous." Replied Manami as she set a folder down. Itona inwardly groaned at the innocent look as she said it. Slouching just a bit, he sighed. Manami felt her lips tug upwards. "You can be honest with me."

"Fine. I was nervous." He admitted with a hand over his eyes.

"Why?" Asked Manami with a giggle. She found it surprising that someone who was much like her and yet still so different, could be nervous around her.

"Why do you want to know?" Itona answered back slowly.

"Curious. I am," Manami quoted, "the nicest."

"Tch." Itona scowled a little as she used his own words against them. "B-Because... I never called a girl by her name... Before..." At the confession, Manami blushed. She was beginning to feel embarrassed and shy. Something that the two were becoming too familiar with. "So... Yesterday, when you said to call you by your name... I-I was...sh-shy." Itona's voice reached a small whisper.

"O-Oh... Sorry." Apologized Manami. Itona glanced at her, confused. "I guess it was a little selfish of me." She explained. "But, I think I calling you by your name is better. It makes me happy."

"You're a little too honest right now." Exclaimed Itona as he chuckled a bit, his face still pink. Manami laughed along with him.

"So it seems!" She cheered. After gathering themselves, Manami pulled out a light blue composition book. "I had an idea of how we can go about this." She stated. At this time, Itona was fully listening to her. Manami found that having someone's full attention was nice feeling. Sure, people paid attention to her when she made herself known, but this was the first time she remembered having someone's undivided attention. "We can write our experiences in this notebook. We can share it and each page we write can be related to each point about friendship."

Itona nodded his head in understanding. "Alright, cool. Heeey, since we're thinking outside the box, do you want to also make a friendship atom?" He asked. Manami grinned.

"I thought you said they make up everything." She teased. Itona leaned into her with a grin of his own.

"It's everything I want to make up with you."

"Someone call the fire department because it's _**hot** _ over here!" Came a light, teasing voice. Manami and Itona immediately looked to where the voice came from and saw Rio. She slid herself into the same seat as Manami (somehow, the chemist was just as confused) and wrapped an arm around her shoulder. "Look at you two~!" She cooed and softly pinched Manami's right cheek. "All lovey dovey and stuff!"

"That was some intense flirting." Came Tōka's voice as she mimicked Rio's trick on Itona's seat. Itona did his best to keep his eyes above the brunette's face. Stiffening, he looked at his partner. She was in the same boat as him, apparently. Her shoulders were tense and he could tell that she didn't like whatever Rio and Tōka were insinuating.

"We're friends, Nakamura-san." Manami corrected in a shy way.

"Right, _friends._ " Rio grinned. Manami shuffled away a bit. _She's so cute to tease._ The blonde thought. _So many cute reactions._ Rio began to see why Karma liked the girl so much. _As a friend, of course._ She added to herself with a smirk.

"Don't you have your own different partners to find?" Itona gruffly asked. He looked at the girl next to him. "Where's Terasaka?" He asked her, trying to shoot a glare and not look down to her chest. He was finding it really hard to do with her being so close. Tōka just grinned, as if keeping a secret.

"He's working on our visual aid with Rio's partner." She answered and folded her arms under her chest. Itona gulped and looked back to Manami.

"That's right." Rio piped in agreement. "Maehara and Terasaka should be having tons of fun right now." The smiles of both girls made Itona and Manami feel wary and the two were filled with caution. "So, how are you two doing? What did you guys choose from the P-Table?"

"Oh, we di—" Manami started to answer but was cut off by Itona.

"It's a secret." He stated with a flat tone. Rio frowned but shrugged her shoulders nonetheless.

"Whatever you say." She replied. "Do you know how cute you two are together?" Rio changed subjects in order for her plan to work. She knew that Itona and Manami were aware that she was up to no good. She also knew Manami wouldn't ever say anything that would seem as if she was accusing the blonde of doing something bad. That made Rio feel a little guilty because she knew how much Manami adored her and enjoyed her company. Though, for Itona...

It seemed like he didn't want to look like a jerk in front of Tōka.

Rio was glad that 50/50 guess paid off.

"What are you trying to say?" He asked in a rough tone. Rio felt her smile fall a little.

"What?" She replied in an innocent tone. Itona gave her a hard look. She wasn't fooling anyone with her over the sweet eyes and voice laced with honey. "Is it wrong for me to think of how cute you two could be together?" Tōka nodded her head, agreeing with Rio. Itona rolled his eyes.

"No." He answered honestly but glared at Rio. "But we don't like it. So take a hike." Rio felt her plan cracking right before her eyes.

 _Sheesh, he can't cut a girl some slack. I hope those two idiots and Fuwa-chan finished a little early._ Forcing a smug grin on her face, Rio _tsk'd_ and got out of Manami's seat. "I'm sorry if I made you uncomfortable." She whispered in the small girl's ear. Manami relaxed and patted her hand that was on the seat. Feeling a bit better, Rio nodded to Tōka for them to leave. "Alright, fine then." She said to Itona. "I know when I'm not wanted. Good day."

That being said, the two girls left Itona and Manami. "We should leave this classroom." Suggested the white haired boy. Manami gave him a curious look. "After what she pulled, I don't trust Nakamura right now. I don't even trust being in the same room as her." Itona began to sit up. Manami followed after him and quickly grabbed the notebook.

"Okay!" She replied. Opening the door, Itona and Manami exited the school building and decided to work by the side of the school where the storage room was. Hardly anyone went there. Except Taiga when he was on one of his nightly...sprees.

Itona took off his blazer and set it on the floor. "Sit." It didn't seem like an offer but Manami took it anyways with a smile. Grabbing a pen from her pocket, she began to write down in the journal. "Starting already?" He asked as he sat next to her. Looking over her, he tried to read the words she wrote down.

 _Day XX, Month XOXO._

 _Itona is a very reliable friend. He gives the sense of comfort and unlike me, can read an atmosphere. Quick to defend a friend, I think—though blunt—his words come across loud and clear. I believe he is someone I can be myself around. - Manami_

A light, fluttering feeling nit at Itona as he slowly pulled away. "How nice of you." He muttered under his breath. Giggling, Manami lightly nudged him. "Kinda of an early start, though? Don't you think?"

"The present is always a good time to start." She replied and clutched the notebook against her chest. "I'm kind of excited."

"For what?" Itona asked with a brow raised. "This project?"

"Spending time with you."

* * *

 _A little after Manami and Itona left..._

"Do you think they finished it time?" Tōka asked Rio as the two sat next to each other by seat near the window. The blonde shrugged and leaned back against the chair, her feet on the desk.

"Who knows." She replied with disinterest. "But if they didn't, Fuwa-chan would be coming right now telling me to run." At the statement, Tōka laughed. Rio leered lightly her way but smiled nonetheless. "I would be gone before Fuwa-chan even had the chance t—" Yuzuki suddenly burst through the door.

"RUN NAKAMURA!" She screamed.

Faster than Tōka could blink, Rio was out the window of the classroom. Just as she had exited, a loud bang echoed through the room. Looking over to the door, Tōka saw a steaming redhead. Just the sight of him brought a chill so deep it reached her bone. There was an ominous cloud around Karma and the look on his face was pure anger. She gulped.

 _Oh my God._ She thought as Yuzuki managed to crawl her way over. Tōka looked down at her feet and wondered why the manga loving girl was hiding. "What are you doing?" She whispered. Yuzuki shook as she looked up.

"Karma got rid of Maehara-kun and Terasaka-kun so fast." She replied. "I don't think he saw me, but he really didn't like Nakamura's little gift to him." Yuzuki shuddered the at mere memory of watching Karma open his shoe locker. In it was the crown Rio had made earlier.

Hiroto and Ryōma were tasked with sneaking the crown into the locker. Yuzuki had been on the lookout. Unfortunately for all of them, Karma had gotten to his locker earlier than usual for his daily class skipping. Yuzuki had hidden herself right away while Hiroto and Ryōma were caught in his range of fire once he saw the gift Rio had given him.

"Oh gosh." Yuzuki whimpered and covered her head. "He's coming this way."

"Where is Rio?" Came a dark voice. Tōka hesitantly looked up and flinched. Right before her was Karma and in his left hand was a crushed, decorated paper crown.

"Umm, she went to use the restroom." Tōka lied in a sugary tone. _Please believe me._ She added on desperately. Karma only scowled at the brunette and glanced at the window and smirked. Tōka slowly looked over and panicked. The window...

It was open.

Looking down at Tōka and Yuzuki, Karma sneered at them. "I'll deal with you two later." He promised and jumped out the window. Yuzuki whimpered.

"I'm never helping you two again."

:::::::

Karma was like a hound off a leash as he chased Rio around the building. His footsteps pounded after her and Rio was honestly feeling a little scared. And Karma...

He could smell the fear radiating of fher. With a crushed paper crown in hand, his anger was fueled with more vigor. Karma was slowly catching up to the blonde. With an evil grin, he turned a corner and watched as Rio suddenly stopped. "Got you!" He exclaimed, catching her wrist and pulled her towards him in a rough manner. He was about to threaten her until she shushed him.

Appalled, the redhead growled. "Don't yo—"

"Ssh!" Rio hissed and pulled her wrist away. "Look!" The girl pointed ahead. Rolling his eyes, Karma looked anyways. He paused.

"The present is always a good time to start. I'm kind of excited."

"For what? This project?"

"Spending time with you."

Karma watched as the boy and girl before him got along. He could tell right away that his favorite chemist was growing comfortable with the other boy. Part of Karma wanted to feel happy that she was getting along with her partner but as he watched her smile to him, all shy but open, Karma felt a bitter taste crawl up his throat. He didn't like this. He really didn't like this.

Rio, who was standing a bit a ways from him, watched him with interest. The hand that held tightly onto the paper crown loosened and it fell softly to the ground.

It was a pretty decorated thing. Covered in swirls and hearts and hand-drawn vials and beakers. In bright, bold, blue letters was the saying, **Are you Itonami too? ;)**

 _Ouch..._ Rio was beginning to feel pretty bad.

* * *

 _(A/N: Re-reading this makes me cringe a bit. Writing a friendship genre is harder now than it used to be for me._

 _I also didn't want romance to be a major thing in here. ...romance may be a major thing here. I'll think about putting it as a genre. I honestly tried not to add romance. It's not working. Help. Me. Lol._

 _Almost done with the next chapter. I'll give you guys a a few hints on what it will be about since I didn't update last week. Ahem._

 _Itona's Past Unveiled! Manami's Feelings Spill Open. And An Unlikely Trio? Stay tuned!)_


End file.
